RETAILPOCALYPSE: Walgreens will shutter more than 1,200 stores in bid to turn around struggling chain as retail industry continues to worsen.

10/15/2024

RETAILPOCALYPSE: Walgreens will shutter more than 1,200 stores in bid to turn around struggling chain as retail industry continues to worsen.

EndTimesProphecyWatch.com

October 15, 2024

1–2 minutes

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NEWS REPORT:

Walgreens said on Tuesday it would shut 1,200 stores over the next three years as new CEO Tim Wentworth plots a turnaround at the struggling pharmacy chain operator hit by sluggish consumer spending and low drug reimbursement rates.

The company also narrowly beat Wall Street’s lowered estimates for fourth-quarter adjusted profit, and forecast fiscal-year earnings that were mostly in-line with expectations.

News of the closures means that by 2027 one in seven Walgreens will have closed its doors. Around 500 of the stores scheduled for the chop will shutters over the next year, although their locations have not yet been revealed. Pharmacy chains are facing their most turbulent time in recent history as consumers avoid high-priced grocery items and pressures mount on payments they receive from drug middlemen for filling prescriptions.

America’s retail sector is facing what has been dubbed a ‘retail apocalypse’ driven by high inflation leading to store closures and bankruptcies. Consumers are also increasingly choosing to shop online rather than in bricks and mortar stores.

Other chains who’ve closed many or all of their stores include Macy’s, Rite Aid, K-Mart, 7-Eleven and Family Dollar.

As a result, Walgreens’ stock is trading near 30-year lows and down 65% this year, making it the worst performing stock on the S&P 500 index. Wentworth has unveiled a series of changes since taking on the top job last year, including the removal of multiple mid-level executives and a $1 billion cost-cutting program.

‘This turnaround will take time, but we are confident it will yield significant financial and consumer benefits over the long term,’ said Wentworth in a statement.

The closures were announced in June but the company had not disclosed the number of affected stores at that time. It had over 8,000 stores in the United States as of Aug. 31 last year.

In the fourth quarter of its fiscal year 2024, Walgreens said it recorded impairment charges on the goodwill of home care provider CareCentrix and equity investment in China.